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DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 16: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M’s Toyota, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series 64th Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 16, 2022 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
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DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 16: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M’s Toyota, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series 64th Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 16, 2022 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
Kyle Busch may be in danger of seeing his NASCAR Cup career in jeopardy. This is because he does not have a sponsor to back him for the 2023 Cup Series season. As it happens, Mars Inc and M&Ms are leaving the sport, so Busch will be without his long-time sponsor. However, there was a time when another reason nearly cost him his career. Back in 2016, Busch opened up to Jeff Gordon in the latter’s first interview as a Fox Sports pundit.
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Kyle Busch said, “I was like, man, I’m never going to race again. Like, I thought right then and there my career was over. I remember there was a time when Samantha and I were just reminiscing on the whole year. We sat down. We were just kind of like catching our breath.”
“One of those type deals and we looked at each other and were like, ‘We did it. We’re champions. Can you believe it? It was just one of those surreal moments of just her and I. Everything kind of calming down and realizing it was finally coming to.”
What was Kyle Busch referring to when he made these comments?
The Joe Gibbs Racing driver endured a frightening crash at Daytona during an Xfinity race in 2015. As it turned out, his car spun to the infield and smashed heavily into a wall, injuring him. This resulted in Kyle Busch missing the Daytona 500 for the first time in his career.
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Despite missing 11 straight races, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver made a miraculous return. Of course, at this point, one would think that getting in the Playoffs would be a Herculean task. However, Kyle Busch proved everyone wrong by winning at Sonoma, qualifying him for the NASCAR Playoffs.
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RICHMOND, VIRGINIA – APRIL 02: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Mars Crunchy Cookie Toyota, walks the gridduring practice for the NASCAR Cup Series Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway on April 02, 2022 in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Kyle Busch then followed it up by taking a hat-trick of wins at Kentucky, New Hampshire, and Indianapolis. When the Playoffs finally rolled by, he did just enough to enter the Championship 4. Finally, he capped off the fairytale year by winning the season finale at Homestead-Miami and taking his maiden Cup title.
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